A Christmas Meister
by Flamegirl217
Summary: Music Meister has escaped from Arkham, and after almost dying he decides to give up his life of crime forever. We can't have that, can we?
1. Prologue

**A/N: Okay, we're starting with a big disclaimer. I do not own DC Comics, Batman: The Brave And The Bold, or The Music Meister. I also do not own _A Christmas Carol_ or the concept of it. But, technically at least, I _do_ own Parsy, Prezzie and Destiny, the three spirits used in this story. **

"All right, that's it!" The Music Meister exclaimed, throwing his hat onto the sofa, "No more crime!" The Music Meister had just arrived back at his hideout after escaping from Arkham Asylum, where he had been for almost a month. It hadn't been easy either; he had almost been shot twice, narrowly missed a taser, and had nearly impaled himself on the main gate. In retrospect, climbing over the gate hadn't been the best idea, but one doesn't really think about that when they're trying not to receive a bullet in the head. The Music Meister plucked the remote control from the coffee table and turned on the television, an old one with a small screen that closely resembled a box.

" _And to the weather,_ " The weather reporter said, " _It looks like Gotham City's having its first blizzard tonight, so stay inside, keep warm, and tomorrow we'll all enjoy a white Christmas._ "

"Not much to enjoy." Music Meister grumbled under his breath as he shut and locked the door. The Music Meister wasn't usually a sour note, but his charisma had been dampened by recent events.

 _Oh come on._ A voice in his head said. _You love Christmas. The decorations, the fresh snow on the ground, the carolling._ It must have been his conscience or something similar. The Music Meister turned on the heater, noticing a chill in the air, before sitting down on the sofa.

"I'm not speaking badly of Christmas, I just find it hard to enjoy when I've recently had to avoid speeding bullets." He replied, propping his feet up on the coffee table and moving his hat so it was out of harms way.

 _Yes, but look on the bright side._ The voice replied. _You're out._

"Yes, but now I don't have to worry about that ever again."

 _Speaking of which, are you serious?_ The voice asked. _You can't give up crime!_

"I just did." The Music Meister replied nonchalantly, focus not really on the television anymore.

 _But you said yourself that you're the maestro of villainy!_ The voice in his head exclaimed, dumbfounded. _I can't believe this!_ The Music Meister turned the television off and lay down on the sofa, swinging his legs up.

"And I can't believe I'm talking to myself again." He replied, "I probably just need a good night's sleep." The Music Meister closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep.

 **A/N: Yes, I know this is a shit chapter. Moving on.**


	2. Past

The Music Meister was fast asleep, quiet snores escaping his lips, arms behind his head. The window beside the TV opened slowly, and a cold wind swept snowflakes into the room, swirling and looping like a winding snake. They swirled towards Music Meister, circling around his head and he swept a hand in front of his face, still asleep. The snowflakes scattered before the wind picked them up again and threw them into The Music Meister's face, and he woke with a start, wiping the collected snow off his face.

"What?" Music Meister said sleepily before noticing another person standing next to the open window. It was a young girl, maybe six or seven years old, and looked very thin and fragile. She was wearing what looked like an artic or Eskimo outfit, complete with a fluffy hood pulled over her white hair. The little girl was staring at The Music Meister, as if waiting for him.

"Um…who are you?" Music Meister asked and the girl giggled before jumping onto the sofa, a smile on her face.

"I'm a spirit silly." The girl giggled, as if it were obvious, "A past spirit." The Music Meister's face showed he wasn't impressed, and he glanced around slowly.

"Ha ha very funny, I've seen that movie." Music Meister replied flatly, "I know its Christmas and everything, but get out of my house." The young girl giggled again before hopping off the sofa to sit cross-legged on the carpet.

"That's just a cawinky-dink." She replied, "It doesn't matter if it's Christmas." The Music Meister sat up on the sofa, leaning forward and narrowing his eyes at the girl.

"Do you know who I am?" He asked, voice dropping dangerously and the girl nodded before getting up and pulling at Music Meister's arm.

"You're Michel Forte." The little girl replied, and Music Meister blinked twice, suddenly dumfounded.

"How do you know my name?" He asked and the young girl giggled before she let go of The Music Meister's arm, a snowball appearing out of nowhere and she threw it at the wall. Before it hit, the snowball seemed to collapse on itself before expanding and turning into a pale blue portal looking thing.

"Are you coming?" The young girl asked and The Music Meister sighed before standing up, arm being pulled towards the portal by the young girl.

"You can call me Parsy by the way." The young girl said before the two of them disappeared into the portal.

There was a wave of cold before The Music Meister found himself on a basketball court, an old red brick wall behind the basket closest to them. Music Meister looked at Parsy, who was holding onto his hand like the child she was, but before he could say something Parsy held her fingers to her lips and pointed to the red brick wall. Music Meister looked to see a weedy boy thrown into the wall, glasses cracking from the impact. Three greasy boys formed a fairly wide semicircle around the weedy boy, trapping him in, and they laughed and sniggered.

 _Wait a minute. I remember this…_ The Music Meister thought as he examined the weedy boy, his ginger, orange hair glinting in the light, with a large gap between his front teeth. The weedy boy was The Music Meister, when he had been much younger.

"What's the matter choir boy?" One boy asked, the others still sniggering. The young Meister used the wall for support as he got to his feet, only to be shoved into it again. The Music Meister's fists clenched, but Parsy squeezed his fist, and when he looked at her she shook her head in a silent warning.

 _Just watch._ Parsy's voice said softly in Music Meister's mind, and he looked back in time to see his young self pushed into the wall again.

"Please…" Young Meister begged, voice barely above a whisper and blood starting to trickle from his nose, "Please stop…" The three older boys howled with laughter before one of them gave a big grin to the other two and grabbed hold of Young Meister's arm.  
"Tell ya what choir boy." He said, pulling Young Meister to his feet, but didn't release his arm, "Sing a little song for us. If we like it, you can go." The three boys sniggered again, and Music Meister glared at them, a scowl on his face. If he could have right now, Music Meister would have grabbed those three by their throats and tied them up in the death trap that failed to kill the Bat and the bird. But Parsy was holding onto Music Meister's hand with an iron grip, so he stayed put.

Young Meister gulped as his arm was released, and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead as he struggled to sing a note.

"Ya gotta try harder than that choir boy!" One of the greasy boys laughed and Young Meister licked his lips before swallowing again and starting to sing.

 _Oh please have mercy_

 _On a small little boy_

 _I am not to be played with_

 _Or broken like a toy_

The Music Meister dipped his head to the side slightly. Even as a young boy, he had talent. The older boys must not have thought so, because their laughter had faded to frowns.

"Yeah, _bad_ word choice." One said before grabbing Young Meister's arm roughly, and in surprise Young Meister let out a long high note. All three of the greasy boys froze, expressions becoming slack and eyes becoming glazy, and both Young Meister and The Music Meister watched, intrigued. After a few seconds the boys returned to normal, and Young Meister looked at all of them before singing the same high note again, and the same thing happened like before. A small smile appearing on Young Meister's face, he sucked in a deep breath, chest puffing out.

 _You seem to be my tools_

 _So dance you mindless fools!_

The three boys danced and spun like ballerinas, and Young Meister laughed, grinning happily, and The Music Meister felt his own small smile forming. He had come so far since then, but now… There was another wave of cold, and Parsy and Music Meister were back in his hideout, right where they had left.

"So?" Parsy asked, letting go of Music Meister's hand and he glanced at her before shrugging.

"If you're trying to make a point, I don't think I see it." He replied, going back to the sofa, and Parsy stamped her foot on the ground in frustration.

"I'm trying to show you that you can't just give up!" Parsy exclaimed, and The Music Meister raised an eyebrow at her.

"So you're saying that I can't give up crime?" Music Meister asked, voice showing he was being rhetorical and wasn't convinced, and Parsy threw her hands up in the air, exasperated,

"Ugh." Parsy said before creating another snowball-portal, "Maybe one of the others will get through to you." Parsy disappeared through the portal, and The Music Meister was once again alone.

 **A/N: Yes, crappy origin, I know, even _I_ don't like it. But I can't write the origin I actually like and prefer without being held accountable for plagiarism. The origin for Music Meister I prefer is from 'And So I Face The Final Curtain' by Seiberwing on Archive Of Our Own.**


	3. Present

For a few seconds, The Music Meister just stood in the middle of his living room, confused. Just as he decided to move on from what had just occurred, The Music Meister felt an icy chill and turned to see a solid sheet of ice forming on his window ledge, inching into the room.

 _Let me guess…_ The Music Meister thought before the ice shattered and the pieces formed a person, a tall teenage girl. Her hair was silver and tied in two plaits, both draping over her shoulders. She looked almost exactly like Anna from _Frozen_ , complete with the winter dress.

"Seriously?" Music Meister asked, gesturing to the teenager's outfit and she shrugged.

"Hey, it's cold." She defended, "And besides, that movie was made in the present, so it's fair game for me."

"So you would be the ghost of Christmas present?" Music Meister presumed, but the teenager pinched the bridge of her nose, sighing in exasperation.

"Didn't Parsy explain this already?" The teenager asked, "We're spirits, and the fact that its Christmas is just a coincidence." The teenage girl looked back to Music Meister and held out her hand.

"I'm a spirit of the present. Friends call me Prezzie." The teenager introduced and Music Meister shook her hand before gesturing around the two of them.

"So are you going to show me my present or something?" Music Meister asked, "We're already in it." Prezzie wagged a finger before pointing to the same wall Parsy had used earlier. A jagged sheet of ice spread over the wall, expanding like an opening flower bud.

"Walk." Prezzie ordered and Music Meister gave her a distrusting look, doubting that running into a wall covered in ice was a good idea.

"The ice is like the entrance to Platform nine and three quarters." Prezzie explained and, still doubtful, Music Meister walked up to the large sheet of ice.

"Are you sure about th-" Music Meister asked, but was cut off when Prezzie pushed him forward roughly.

"Ow." Music Meister groaned, rising from his hands and knees and brushing the dirt off his pants. Prezzie appeared beside him, a grim but amused look on her face.

"Next time, don't question me." Prezzie said as Music Meister got to his feet.

"Where are we?" He asked and Prezzie sighed.

"Well, before I got here, I was thinking to myself 'what can I show in the present that will show Mr Forte he's making a bad decision?'" Prezzie explained, "And this is the best I could think of." Prezzie grabbed Music Meister's arm and pulled him towards a large apartment building.

"Hold on." Prezzie instructed before ice formed on the ground beneath their feet. Music Meister teetered as the ice started to grow like a column, rising up and up until it reached a third floor window.

"Look." Prezzie said quietly, pointing and Music Meister peered through the window, wiping away the residue on it.

 _Bossy spirit isn't she._ He thought. The first thing Music Meister saw was cats, a lot of them, all different shapes, colours and sizes. All of the cats started creating a din of meows as someone entered the apartment, throwing some sort of goggles onto the sofa.

 _Catwoman._ Music Meister realised, watching the female criminal swing a large burlap sack off of her shoulder and onto the sofa.

"Merry Christmas my darlings." Catwoman declared, opening the sack and pulling out a small toy mouse.

"Bella, this is for you." Catwoman said as she gave the mouse toy to a white cat with a black patch over one eye. The Music Meister watched as Catwoman handled out all sorts of cat toys and treats to her pets.

"So…what am I learning here?" Music Meister asked and Prezzie sighed before a sheet of ice crawled over the window.

"Let's try somewhere else." Prezzie said, walking through the ice, pulling Music Meister through behind her.

Music Meister looked around, confused as to where they were exactly. It looked like a warehouse, and his suspicions were confirmed when he saw the multiple boxes and large funhouse props stacked up and against the walls. Prezzie grabbed Music Meister's arm and spun him around, and he saw a large Christmas tree covered in blinking lights and ornaments.

"All done Mista J!" Harley Quinn cheered, skipping over to Joker's side. Music Meister raised an eyebrow before realising that the ornaments were mostly chattering teeth and other small gags, and he almost rolled his eyes.

 _Just watch._ Prezzie's voice ordered exasperatedly in Music Meister's mind.

"Good job Harley." Joker congratulated with his signature grin, looking proudly at the tree. Harley smiled and rested her head on Joker's shoulder, taking his arm. To Music Meister and even Harley's (to a small degree) surprise, Joker let her stay there.

"Merry Christmas Mista J." Harley smiled, looking at him adoringly with her big blue eyes. Music Meister gave a small smile despite himself before noticing Prezzie looking at him, and he forced his expression to a frown. Prezzie rolled her eyes before there was the sound of ice breaking and they were both back in Music Meister's hideout.

"Joker, Dr Harleen and Miss Kyle all are part of Batman's rogue gallery, but they still find time to enjoy the holidays." Prezzie summarised, facing Music Meister, "Which means that even though you _think_ you should give up crime, you shouldn't." Music Meister crossed his arms in front of his chest with a scowl, eyes narrowing slightly.

"Really? Because even if I _do_ stay the maestro of villainy, I'll still be attacked, shot at, chased down by the Bat…" Music Miester snapped before gritting his teeth, "And Black Canary _still_ won't want anything to do with me." Prezzie just stood quietly, listening to Music Meister's rant, and after he had finished she calmly turned towards the wall Parsy had used to leave.

"Everyone has a place Mr Forte." Prezzie said simply, ice spreading on the wall, "Destiny will show you that." With that, Prezzie disappeared through the ice, and after she had left the ice disappeared into nothing.

 **A/N: The spirits have stupid names, but how else are you supposed to make 'past'. 'present' and 'future' work in your favour?**


	4. Future

Music Meister just stood in the middle of the room, waiting with his arms crossed and tapping his foot. He wasn't stupid enough to fall for the same thing twice. He would decide that nothing was going to happen, then turn around and some new 'spirit' would show up and lecture him as if he were a child. On cue, a chill swept through the air, but it wasn't snow or ice or appeared. And it wasn't as minimal as before. Delicately patterned frost spread out through the room and covered every surface, the entire room becoming so cold Music Meister now had his arms crossed for warmth instead of impatience.

"Hello?" Music Meister asked, his breath coming out in a short puff as he shivered slightly. Frost spread upwards from the floor in front of Music Meister, taking the form of a person. The frost became a woman that looked about in her late thirties, her shimmering black hair pulled up in a neat bun. She was wearing a light blue dress that reached the floor and was decorated with ruffles, resembling a minimalist ball gown. The woman was wearing lightly applied makeup, her eyeshadow and lipstick a very pale blue.

"I assume you would be the spirit of the future." Music Meister remarked. He had stopped shivering, as the frost had retreated as soon as the woman had appeared.

"You're learning." She replied nonchalantly, "My name is Destiny." Music Meister was over this by now. He'd be lucky if he didn't get frostbite, or a cold at least.

"Let me guess," Music Meister said coldly (no pun intended), "You're going to show me what will happen if I give up crime." Destiny retained a very calm expression as she looked at Music Meister.

"Yes." She replied before tapping Music Meister on the forehead. Music Meister's eyes widened beneath his music note glasses as frost spread from where Destiny's finger had been, and it spread within seconds until he was fully covered in it.

The frost evaporated and disappeared, and Music Meister sucked in a deep breath of shock and relief. When he was sure he wasn't dead, Music Meister looked around and his jaw dropped. He was standing in the middle of a road in Gotham City. Or what was left of it. Debris was everywhere, the buildings were crumbling or completely demolished, fires of different sizes burned everywhere, and the sky was thick with dark black smoke.

"What happened?" Music Meister asked, his horror making his voice barely above a whisper. He jumped as Destiny appeared beside him, her gaze focused on the post-apocalyptic Gotham.

"Who did this?" Music Meister asked, voice louder this time, "What happened?"

"I'm only allowed to reveal a small amount of details about the future." Destiny replied, her calm exterior still present, "What I can tell you is…limited." Music Meister glanced at Destiny before taking an audible breath through the nose, trying not to inhale any of the smoke.

"How did this happen?"

"One person was the cause of this." Destiny explained, "All of it. Like many in Gotham City, the person responsible eventually lost their mind, and they tore through the city in a psychopathic rage." Music Meister shook his head slightly, disbelieving that a single person could leave _all_ of Gotham in ruins.

"But…what about Batman?" Music Meister questioned, turning to Destiny before gesturing around them, "Surely he would stop something like this." Destiny didn't reply, and instead she turned and looked in a seemingly random direction. Frost snaked its way in a line from where Music Meister and Destiny were standing, to where a jagged piece of metal was sticking out of the ground at a slight angle. Music Meister's jaw dropped once again, but this time his entire face fell with dismay. Caught on the jagged metal, gently flapping in the breeze, was a black cape. _Batman's_ cape.

"Oh my god." Music Meister whispered, starting towards the cape, but Destiny held an arm up to stop him.

"This is why you cannot bring an end to your life of crime." Destiny said, now decisive and certain, "Without The Music Meister, Gotham will have no hope to survive." Music Meister eyes were wide as he looked at Destiny, finally understanding why his decision was not a good one. Besides, what would he do if he _did_ give up his title? He would never be able to stay away from his true calling, his destiny (pun only _slightly_ intended).

"So how do I find this person and stop them?" Music Meister asked with determination as he turned to face Destiny.

"Things will reveal themselves in time." Destiny replied, giving a content but extremely small smile. Music Meister was once again covered in frost, and when it evaporated he was (once again) inside his hideout, with Destiny nowhere in sight. Music Meister slowly looked around, and after a moment he calmly walked over the couch and picked up his hat. A smirk slowly spread on Music Meister's face as he placed the hat carefully on his head.

" _I'm The Music Meister! And I'm here…to…settle the…SCOOOOOOOOOOOORRRREEEEE!_ "

 **A/N: In case you can't tell, this is set _before_ 'The Bat, The Witch And The Maestro'. Merry Christmas everyone for 2015.**


End file.
